This invention relates generally to television receivers and particularly to so-called institutional television receivers that are controllable, in some degree, from control centers. Institutional television receivers as used herein include, without limitation, television receivers that are used in hotels, motels, hospitals, prisons, schools, and the like.
Many television receivers, such as those manufactured by the assignee of this invention, include a communications port that enables the television receiver to "talk to" an external device or control center. In this connection, an external device or control center is considered to be any system or machine that provides control of the television receiver through the television receiver's data communications port. Function controls and program material may be supplied to the television receiver from the control center. The television receiver may also be used as an input device for the control center to receive information and commands from the user/viewer. An example is a hotel receiver, where in-house displays and messages may be presented to the user/viewer on certain channels, pay-per-view-programs on different channels, conventional programming on other channels and special services on still other channels. The channels made available to the television receiver are determined by the control center. In many arrangements, the user does not directly control the television receiver. For example, an ON/OFF command from a remote control device or other television receiver input, may send a signal to the control center, where the information is decoded and an appropriate command sent back to activate the television receiver, tune it to a particular channel, and display preselected material on the viewing screen. The user, in most instances, is unaware of the fact that functioning of the television receiver is actually being dictated from a control center at a remote location.
Recently, legislation has been enacted regarding a so-called V-chip for enabling supervisory control of signals that are receivable by the receiver in accordance with rating codes that are to be imbedded in the television signals. The term V-chip is a misnomer in that it implies a single chip or circuit arrangement whereas the controls may be implemented in different portions of the receiver. A much more explicit term is "parental content control", which will be used hereinafter interchangeably with the term V-chip. The parental content control feature is designed to enable parents to automatically block certain types of television signals from being processed by a television receiver. The parental content control functions may be individually determined by the authorized user, which in most instances will be the parent. This may be accomplished by accessing an appropriate menu on the viewing screen and establishing the desired criteria for viewing based upon the ratings embedded in the television signals. The criteria selections are password protected so that they may not be changed by unauthorized viewers. The selections may also be time-limited so as to provide blocking of certain types of television signals for a specific period of time, after which the blocking criteria is automatically removed.
The present invention is directed to the use of such television receivers in institutional settings, most especially in hotels and motels. It envisions a user determining the viewing criteria in the same manner that he would for a television receiver in his own home, except that the actual control of the receiver and viewing criteria is in under the purview of a control center. The viewer would thus set his preferences and password and any time restraints as usual.